Through the Looking Glass
by G30FF
Summary: A month after defeating Eggman and Eggman Nega, Sonic and Blaze are looking for some way to find each other. But when they do, it may wind up causing more trouble for them than they ever bargained for...


**Through the Looking Glass**  
By **G30FF**

* * *

**Author Notes:**  
Writing romantic fanfiction seems to be quite a bad habit for me, isn't it?

This creative endeavor came from my completion of the game Sonic Rush for the Nintendo DS, which by the way if you don't have it, GET IT. After the final zone, the goodbye scene between Sonic and Blaze contains a moment that looks remarkably to me like Sonic kissing Blaze. Check out GameFAQs for a game script guide to find the scene in particular if you haven't played the game. I like Blaze, I have ever since I learned about her, though I was never quite sure if she was a simple marketing gimmick. And knowing that she is likely going to be forgotten and never seen again in any future Sonic games disappoints me greatly. The result of that is what you see here. Usual warnings apply; some mature themes but nothing terribly bad.

Sonic the Hedgehog and all related characters are copyright to SEGA, DiC, and Archie Comics. I make no claims to their ownership. This story is set in the video game Sonicverse and deals with a Sonic and Blaze pairing. If you wish to comment, make it about the writing. I don't want to be targeted by SonicXAmy fans.

* * *

Blaze the Cat just couldn't seem to concentrate today.

The light of the Sol Emeralds lit up the shrine with an eerie glow, the shrine that had been entrusted to her and the rest of her family line, the hereditary guardians of the jewels that were the life force of their world. Until recently, Blaze had been a most efficient guardian. Their power flowed through her, cursing her with the power of fire. That power always drove Blaze to distance herself from others, her burden leaving her with a fear of hurting anyone she allowed into her heart. Until recently…

Doctor Eggman Nega, the despot of her world… He had violated the sanctity of her family's shrine, he had tried to take the Sol Emeralds, communicated with his alter-ego from a parallel world and caused a dimensional rift that almost destroyed them all. She had failed in her duty to her parents, to her people, to herself… But it all became better once she met them.

When she arrived, she met an odd young rabbit girl named Cream. Her kindness was infectious in such a way that she had never seen before. Blaze prided herself on her control over her emotions, but Cream managed to penetrate her shell without her even realizing it. She became her first real friend. And she also led her to him: Sonic the Hedgehog. The hero of his world, in much the same way she was of hers. Except for one difference, he had no curse. No fire. Nothing that made him drive people away from him. In fact, he had also worked his way under her skin, the way he was so open and kind to her. Even after all she did to try and drive him away, after their battle over who would fight Eggman, all the mean things she said, he was still kind to her. He wanted to be close to her, to be her friend. He showed her the true power of the Sol Emeralds, the true power of friendship… Together they saved the world.

And she couldn't get him out of her head.

From the end of the battle to now, he was always on her mind. The things he said to her to help her, showing her the folly of her ways, to their goodbye… Blaze began to blush. Why he had decided to do something so bold…

She thought back to their parting. The energy of the Sol Emeralds and the Chaos Emeralds crackled over their forms and they glowed with energy, the wreckage of the Eggmans' robot falling to the ground, and the energies flowing around them as the fabric of space and time began to heal itself like a cauterized wound. She remembered exactly how he looked at that moment, a kind of sadness heavy on his golden face. "This is it…" he had said.

"…Yes, it is," she replied to him, looking down.

"Everything will be back to normal," he mused.

"I've got to return to my world, as well," Blaze told him. "The Chaos and Sol Emeralds cannot exist in the same world. It would cause another crisis." She didn't know if she had said that to comfort herself or him, but at that moment it didn't matter. She had to leave one of the first and best friends she had ever had.

"I guess it's time to say... good bye," Sonic began. She could tell he was feeling the same sorrow she was and was working as hard as she was to try not to draw attention to it. "Cream will really miss you," he said in an attempt to draw attention away from his own unease.

Blaze knew that was an understatement. She would miss Cream too, as she would miss Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and even Amy. But all she could say was, "I have no choice."

"No words from you?" Sonic asked.

"It's better this way. I first came here as a stranger out of nowhere. I think it's appropriate I leave the same way," she reasoned. "Sonic... thank you for your help. Bye."

"Wait," he told her.

What happened next shocked her beyond belief. Sonic floated towards Blaze. He was so close she could feel his warm breath against her face, and it felt good. Without another word, his lips met hers. Feelings started to flow through her like running water. Years of denial finally caught up to her, and things she had not felt in years or just altogether never felt before rushed up to meet her as the hedgehog's lips pressed against her. It felt good. It felt very good. And yet it was over all too quickly as Sonic floated away from her slightly, his eyes on hers. She knew how she must have looked, but it didn't matter to her at that moment. "This is from me," he told her, a smile cracking his lips. "I'll see you again!" he vowed, as his hand drifted towards hers.

"Yes," Blaze replied, her hand meeting his, "again…"

Blaze quickly snapped back to reality as she felt herself warm. Wisps of smoke had started to lift off of her body, and Blaze quickly worked to calm herself down before she burst into flames from the storm of emotions long denied her. Why had he done that? Why did he kiss her? Didn't that Amy girl have his eye? Actually, from what she saw, she had to wonder if that were true. After all, Sonic seemed to go out of his way to avoid Amy's affections. Could it be that he had feelings for her?

She tried to shake the thought out of her mind. There was no way it would work out. They were from two different worlds, literally. But that kiss… The things he said to her… She couldn't stop thinking about him. "Again," she muttered to herself, remembering their last words to each other.

Blaze shook her head. She needed a cold shower.

* * *

"You want me to WHAT?" asked a dumbfounded Knuckles. The echidna was used to hearing strange things, but this took the cake.

"You heard me, I want you to teach me to meditate," came the reply.

Knuckles blinked. "You're Sonic the Hedgehog," he began. "You can't bear to stand still for just ten seconds, and you want to learn how to meditate, which kinda necessitates sitting perfectly still and quiet for a LOT longer than ten seconds. And besides, what makes you think I'd be able to tell you how?"

Sonic rolled his eyes. "For starters, Red, you know how to commune with the Master Emerald, so you're the perfect person to help me," he began, impatience on his voice as he counted on his fingers. "Secondly, I've got my reasons. Will you help me or not?"

"What does the Master Emerald have to do with this?" Knuckles asked suspiciously, crossing his arms across his chest. He was surprised to get the request from Sonic in the first place. Sonic wouldn't have made the trip to Angel Island like this unless his request was important. On top of that, it was rare for Sonic to come seeking him out unless the world was in danger, and as far as he knew, Eggman hadn't been up to anything since the Eggman Nega incident. "What aren't you telling me?"

Sonic glared at Knuckles for a moment. When it became evident that Knuckles wouldn't budge from his position, Sonic sighed. "All right, I'll tell you, but you'd better not spread this around."

Knuckles pulled back a little. "Okay, my lips are sealed. Now what's the deal?"

Sonic took a deep breath. "I want to see if I can use them to talk to Blaze."

"You mean the cat girl from another dimension?" Knuckles asked. "Why? And how can meditation help you?"

"I was thinking about the connection between the Chaos Emeralds and the Sol Emeralds," Sonic explained. "They link our dimensions together in ways we can't completely understand. And since Blaze has all the Sol Emeralds in her dimension and I have the Chaos Emeralds in ours, I thought just maybe if I learned to communicate with them, they'd put me in touch with Blaze again. So do you think you can do it?"

"You didn't answer my first question," Knuckles said, raising an eyebrow. "Why do you want to talk to Blaze? And for that matter, why don't you want anyone to know about it? I'm sure Cream would like to hear from her again."

"You don't get it, man," Sonic began. "You know how Amy feels about Blaze. She'd get jealous and I'd never hear the end of it if she knew I was going out of my way to contact her."

Knuckles narrowed his eyes. "You're still evading the original question. Why do you want to contact Blaze so badly?"

Sonic started to look somewhat nervous. Another first for him, Knuckles mused with no small amount of surprise. "Well, we didn't really… part how I would have hoped we could."

"Interdimensional rifts do that," Knuckles commented. Suddenly his eyes opened wider. "Oh man. Oh man, I've got it," he said, as he began to smirk. "You've got a thing for her!"

"I do not!" Sonic quickly retorted.

"You like Blaze!" Knuckles repeated, starting to laugh. "This is hilarious! Wait'll I tell everyone!"

Sonic slapped a hand over Knuckles' mouth quicker than he could react. "I do not, and if you breathe a word of this to the others, especially Amy, I'm gonna glue you to the Master Emerald," he threatened.

Knuckles couldn't stop laughing though. "Why Sonic, you're practically blushing!"

"If I am, it's not out of embarrassment," Sonic grumbled, glaring at Knuckles. "You know what, fine," he said as he let go of Knuckles. "I should've known not to come to YOU with this," Sonic muttered.

Knuckles tried to force down his laughter. "Okay, okay, you win," Knuckles told him, taking a few calming breaths. "I'll help you, but you owe me one."

Sonic turned. "Really?" he asked, a smile returning to his face.

"Sure," Knuckles replied. "We'll get started right away. You know, it's amazing. Our young hedgehog is finally growing up." Sonic didn't reply. He just gave the echidna a punch in the arm.

* * *

"So what did you and Knuckles talk about?" Tails asked his idol as the fox taxied the Tornado back into its hanger by his workshop. "You were so insistent on going to Angel Island that you never told me why you wanted to go."

Sonic leaned against the wall, shaking his head. "You'll know when you get older, little buddy," he replied.

Tails closed the hanger and turned to Sonic. "What's that supposed to mean? I'm mature! I'll understand!"

Sonic tilted his head upward and sighed. "You're not gonna give up, are you?" he asked.

Tails shook his head. "Nope!" he replied. "You're my best friend, I wanna know what's going on!"

"I wanted to talk to an old friend," Sonic explained, pushing himself off the wall. "Thanks for the ride, buddy."

"No problem, Sonic," Tails replied. "I hope you had a good time with Knuckles," he said.

Sonic rolled his eyes. "About as good a time as I usually have with that knucklehead," he explained, chuckling. "I'm gonna go check on the Chaos Emeralds," Sonic said. "Think you can hold down the fort while I'm gone?"

Tails gave Sonic a joking salute. "Yes, Sir!" he exclaimed, chuckling.

Sonic grinned, gave Tails a mock salute back, and took off running, stirring up a cloud of dust in his wake.

* * *

Blaze felt refreshed after her shower. She felt a small bit of amusement as she thought how interesting it was to find a cat who didn't mind water, especially one who wielded power over fire. Despite not being able to swim, Blaze loved the water. She had been meaning to learn how to swim, but it hadn't come up. Maybe she would make the time to do so soon. Blaze picked up a royal violet towel from a nearby rack and began to dry her fur. Blaze never thought of herself as a very regal girl. She was a princess, but she often thought of herself as royalty in title only. She was, however, a stickler for tidiness. She kept her fur neatly trimmed and groomed, and it was quite helpful when trying to dry herself.

Blaze dried herself thoroughly, enjoying the cool feeling on her skin from the shower. It was such a relief after dealing with her flames all day. They didn't burn her, of course, but they still left her with constant warmth that admittedly was comfortable on cold nights but was quite annoying on warm ones. As Blaze toweled off, her mind wandered. How did Sonic feel about water? Could he swim? Blaze began to feel the coolness leave her immediately as she thought of what Sonic would look like drenched like she was, and felt her flames start to well up within her again. Why couldn't she stop thinking about him!

"Blaze…"

A familiar voice started to ring in her head. Blaze's eyes widened. "Oh great, now I'm hearing things," she muttered to herself, shaking her head.

"Blaze?" the voice asked again, this time louder and clearer.

Blaze dropped the towel in shock. It couldn't be. "Sonic!" she asked, expecting him to come out from around the corner. Quickly realizing she was naked now, her arms shot to cover herself for what she knew was an impending embarrassment.

"Can you hear me?" came Sonic's voice again. "If you can hear me, go to the Sol Emeralds!" his voice instructed.

Blaze knew she had to be crazy. She had Sonic on the brain, and now he was talking to her in her head. However, the instructions were specific. Something might be up, and if it was… Blaze quickly tied her headfur up in its traditional ponytail and grabbed her clothes, pulling them back on as she hopped and hurried down the halls of the temple back to the Sol Emerald chamber. As Blaze did her coat up, she saw the Sol Emeralds glow brighter and pulsate with energy. "That's a new trick," she muttered to herself as she approached them.

"Blaze?" Sonic's voice asked again, impatiently and with a hint of worry.

"Sonic…" Blaze said. Louder, she said, "If it really is you, tell me what you want me to do!"

"Blaze," Sonic replied again. Obviously he couldn't hear her words, she thought. She noticed though that every time Sonic spoke to her, the Sol Emeralds seemed to pulsate brighter. Perhaps they were the key…

As crazy as it was, Blaze had an idea. She sat cross legged in the center of the Sol Emerald pedestals, resting her hands on her knees. She took in a deep breath, released it slowly, and let the power of the emeralds flow through her being, permeating her very essence. "Sonic," she thought to herself. "Please hear me…"

"Blaze, is that you?" Sonic's voice asked. "Where are you? I can't see you!"

"I'm right here, Sonic," she replied. "I can hear you!"

"Blaze!" Sonic called out.

Suddenly, everything went dark.

* * *

As she awoke, Blaze realized she wasn't in her temple anymore. The marble walls, ornate carpeting and the Sol Emeralds were gone. In their place was a grassy field that seemed to stretch on for miles as far as she could see. Near her was a large oak tree whose bright green leaves flowed in the gentle breeze that swept over the field. Never before on her own world had she seen such a beautiful place. "Where am I?" she asked out loud, not sure who might hear her.

"I think we're in our minds," came a familiar voice from behind her. Blaze whirled around and came face to face with the smiling face of…

"Sonic!" Blaze cried out, throwing her arms around him and hugging him tightly. "I don't believe this! How can you be here? How can I be here? Where IS here?" she asked, unable to contain her smile.

Sonic hugged her back. "I don't really know, but I think the Emeralds did this," he explained. "I thought that since the Chaos Emeralds and the Sol Emeralds were connected, I might be able to talk to you with the Chaos Emeralds and you might be able to do the same with the Sol Emeralds. I guess I was right!"

"I guess you were," Blaze replied, pulling back. Once she realized what she had done, Blaze immediately let go of him, fighting back a blush.

Sonic smiled. "It's really great to see you again," he told her.

"You too," she replied, finally looking back up at him and meeting his eyes. His deep green eyes… "Um," she stammered as she tried to figure out how to cover her own embarrassment, "what have you all been doing since I left? It's been a month now!"

Sonic laughed. "Sit down, I've got a lot to tell."

A few minutes later, Sonic and Blaze were sitting together beneath the great oak tree laughing like old friends at some private joke. "So now Tails won't let Cream into his workshop anymore," Sonic finished telling Blaze, unable to contain his laughter.

Blaze leaned back against the tree to steady herself, laughing freely, allowing the euphoric feelings of happiness to permeate her in ways she had never known before. Always keeping a tight rein on her emotions, she felt so good allowing herself the guilty pleasure of feeling happy. "He must have been so mad!" she commented.

"Mad nothing," Sonic added, leaning on his elbow and facing her, "he's STILL cleaning motor oil off his walls! And you should have seen Vanilla's face when she saw what Cream did to her dress!"

"She seemed nice to me," Blaze remarked.

"She is," Sonic explained. "But I guess even a softie like her has her limits."

Blaze sighed happily. "If only I could see them myself," she mused. "I don't suppose you could help them find a way to join us, could you?"

Sonic looked up. "I really don't know, you and I are attuned to our gemstones, I don't know if they'd be able to share the same kind of bond we do," he said. Sonic turned to her. "I told you all about what we've been doing, you owe me the same courtesy," he remarked with a smirk.

Blaze sighed. "I've been doing more of the same," she began. "Guarding, meditating, studying, the works. I haven't had time to make friends like I did with you all. Or maybe I just can't."

"That's not true," Sonic told her, shifting closer to her. "You're a warm, compassionate girl; you just need to let people in."

Blaze felt Sonic's proximity to her, and began to feel warm. "Sonic," she began, "I've been meaning to ask you something."

"Fire away," he replied.

"When we left," she started, "why did you… you know… kiss me?" As she finished, she felt her face flush. She had said it. There was no backing out of it now.

Sonic knew he was turning red. He had a feeling this was going to come up at some point. "Well, you see, I was… well…" Sonic stammered. He couldn't think of anything to say that could explain his actions. "Well, I was just…"

Blaze placed her hand over his. "How do you feel about me?" she asked. "Forget the other dimensions, forget everything and just tell me. I hate beating about the bush."

He sighed. He was nervous. He didn't know what to say. His mind was a jumble of thoughts and emotions. He didn't know what to say to her. He opened his mouth to try and formulate a response, when…

"Sonic!" came the sound of a high pitched female voice. "Are you in there?" she asked again.

Sonic and Blaze looked around, and Sonic's eyes widened. "Oh man. It's Amy, she found me."

Blaze put her hand on his shoulder. "When can I see you again?" she asked.

"Tomorrow night," Sonic told her. "Eight, if you can swing it."

"I'll be here," Blaze promised. As Sonic got up, Blaze reached a decision. She quickly got to her feet. "Sonic?"

Sonic turned to face her. "What's up?" he asked.

Blaze took in a quick breath and leaned towards him. The kiss was short, but full of emotion and promise. Sonic's eyes widened as Blaze pulled back. "I'll see you tomorrow," she reiterated. With that, the world around them seemed to fade away into white noise. Sonic's eyes never left Blaze as she slowly disappeared from view, and the real world returned to his senses, the promise of seeing her again the last thought in his mind as he snapped back to reality.

* * *

"There you are, Sonic!" Amy called out brightly as she hurried into the cave. With Tails' help, Sonic had turned a cave near the workshop into a makeshift shrine and safe house for the Chaos Emeralds. The cavern was lightly furnished, a few tables, chairs, and of course pedestals for the Chaos Emeralds. Sonic had set out a mat on the floor near the Emeralds to sit on while he meditated. The cave had a thick metal door that Tails designed to protect and disguise the cave entrance from any of Eggman's watchful eyes. Sonic must have been in such a rush to see Blaze again that he forgot to close it after himself. "I've been looking everywhere for you!" she said.

Sonic's eyes blinked open as Amy stood in front of him, a bright smile on her face. "How'd you find me here?" he asked.

"Well, I persuaded Tails to tell me where you were," she replied, giggling.

"Persuaded?" he asked, raising an eyebrow and getting to his feet.

"Well, more like threatened," Amy corrected herself. "But that's not important, I've found you!" she said with a smile as she threw her arms around Sonic.

Sonic immediately began to push her off of him. "Get off me, Amy!" he ordered.

"What were you doing here anyway?" Amy asked, still holding on tight to him, paying his request no heed.

"I don't see how it's your business but I was meditating," Sonic told her, pushing harder. Suddenly he found Amy's grip had loosened and easily pushed her off of him. He noticed that she now wore a confused look on her face.

"Meditating? You?" Amy asked curiously.

"Yes, me," Sonic replied. "Knuckles showed me how."

Amy blinked. "But why?"

"Because I needed to relax," he retorted. He knew he couldn't tell Amy that he was trying to talk to Blaze, she would never understand. Even though there was nothing going on between him and Blaze, Amy would never understand Sonic associating with any other females. But was there really nothing going on with Blaze? Their conversation came back to him and he remembered his commitment to see her again tomorrow night…

Amy giggled a bit. "Is that all? Well I know how to make you relax, Sonic!" she commented, moving a bit closer to him.

Sonic didn't like that look in her eyes. The look that made him feel like a piece of meat laid out before a pack of starving wolves. "Sorry Amy, no time, gotta run!" he exclaimed as he did a quick 180 and zoomed off through the door and down the hill.

"Come back here Sonic!" Amy called after him, taking off. "You're so stubborn!"

The hedgehogs were so preoccupied with their tasks that neither of them noticed a small metallic object perched in a tree nearby. A small metallic bird with a camera mounted upon its neck where its head should have been. A blinking red light on the body indicated that it was transmitting something…

* * *

"Come back here Sonic! You're so stubborn!" came the recording sent by the spybot. The image of the not so hidden cavern entrance was displayed across a wide screen and sitting in a large metallic chair before the monitor was none other than the rotund form of Dr. Eggman. The doctor stroked his moustache as he watched the scene before him, tapping buttons on the arm of his chair to rewind and replay the surveillance tape of the cave entrance.

"Excellent, the girl led me to Sonic, just as I knew she would," Eggman mused with a grin. "And where there's Sonic, there's the Chaos Emeralds. I won't let them slip through my fingers this time!" he vowed, turning his chair and placing his chin in his hands. "First I have to get rid of Sonic. Then with nobody to protect the Emeralds I can swoop in for the kill!"

* * *

Blaze awakened alone in her shrine, her eyes opening to the reality of her lonely home. But her loneliness was the last thing on her mind. First Sonic kisses her and now she kisses him? Her situation was getting more and more confusing all the time. She brought her fingers to her lips slowly. The kiss may not have been real, but the feeling was certainly real enough to her. But why had she kissed him? Did she love him? Did he love her? He never had a chance to finish his answer to her. Tomorrow night…

Looking out the temple window Blaze saw that it was already night time. The stars shone brightly outside and the half moon was high in the sky. Her mind reeled with thoughts of what her next meeting with Sonic might hold. She knew she should go to bed, but sleep was the last thing on her mind. Tomorrow night couldn't come fast enough for her. "Good night, Sonic," she whispered as she got up from her seat.

* * *

Sonic sat perched atop a skyscraper in Station Square. He managed to ditch Amy some time ago, and now wanted to just be alone. The bright lights of the city below were beautiful to him. They twinkled like diamonds against the velvety black of the night sky. But his thoughts were not on the city below, or even on Amy.

What had he almost said to Blaze before Amy interrupted them? How DID he feel about her? What did she feel about him? Well, that may not be such a puzzling question; she DID kiss him after all. And even though it was only in his mind, he didn't seem to care. But how did he feel about her?

Sonic knew it was late, but he couldn't sleep. All he could think about was Blaze, and what he was going to say to her next time he saw her. "Good night, Blaze," he whispered quietly, hoping that wherever she may have been she could hear him.

* * *

"Is it just me or has Sonic been acting a little strange the last couple of days?" Amy asked the gathering that had assembled at Cream's house. The next day, Cream invited everyone over for dinner that evening and the usual crowd was more than happy to accept the free meal. Knuckles had declined, citing his duty to the island and the Master Emerald, which was no surprise to anyone. What was a surprise however was that Sonic had declined the invitation. He said he had a prior engagement, and so tonight's get together involved just Cream, Tails, and Amy.

"How do you mean?" Tails asked, leaning back on the couch where Cream sat next to him. "He seemed all right to me."

Amy shook her head. "He's seemed a bit… distant to me, you know? I mean, I went to see him at the emerald shrine, but he just turned tail and ran!"

Tails forced back a little laugh, but grinned at her. "And that surprises you?"

Amy gave him a dark glare. "He was meditating, that doesn't seem strange to you?"

Tails blinked. "Meditating? Sonic?"

"That's what I thought!" Amy replied. "It's so unlike him!"

Cream shrugged. "Maybe Mr. Sonic just wanted some time to himself?"

Amy shook her head. "I don't think so. I mean, I was practically throwing myself at him! How could he resist that?"

Tails glanced at Cream and simply remarked, "I don't think we should be hearing this part."

Amy scoffed. "Oh please. But I'm telling you, something weird is going on."

"Relax," Tails told her, shaking his head, "if something's wrong with Sonic he'll tell us in his own way when he's ready."

"I guess," Amy said. Her friends could see that she was worried. It was plain on her face. She really did care about Sonic, and the younger two knew that not knowing was eating her up inside.

Vanilla entered the room with a smile on her face. "Dinner's ready, kids, come get it while it's hot!"

"Okay mom!" Cream replied, hopping up from the couch, smiling back. She hurried over to Amy's seat and held out her hand. "Come on, Amy! Cheer up! Everything will be okay!"

Amy looked at Cream's hand and sighed. "I hope you're right," she replied, taking Cream's hand and getting to her feet.

* * *

Eight o'clock, Blaze thought to herself. It was time finally. Blaze was an impatient girl, and as such had a hard time forcing herself to wait for the time she arranged with Sonic. She was inwardly very glad that Eggman Nega had gone into hiding to lick his wounds; there was nothing to get in the way of her rendezvous with Sonic. Yet a part of her was hoping for something, anything to distract her from the knot in her stomach. She NEVER got nervous about talking to a guy before. She never got nervous talking to ANYONE before. And yet with Sonic… She wanted to know where this would lead her, and yet at the same time she didn't.

"Blaze?" a voice called out to her.

Blaze perked up immediately. She took in a deep breath. "Well, it's time…" Taking her seat before the Sol Emeralds, Blaze closed her eyes, and let the energy flow through her.

When she opened her eyes again, there was the field once more, except this time the field was dark. The sun had gone down and the stars shone brightly in the sky, brighter than she could ever recall seeing them before. And there, standing next to the oak tree was Sonic. "Good evening, Sonic," Blaze said, starting towards the tree. "You're looking well…" Well was an understatement. He was gorgeous. The moonlight shone over his quills making him seem almost luminous beneath their light, and his eyes… Their deep green almost seemed deeper to her, like she could fall and drown in their pools.

"You too Blaze," Sonic replied as he watched her intently. He tried to look nonchalant, but every step she took closer made it harder for him. Ever since yesterday he had a hard time not thinking about her and now that she was so close to him he was keenly aware of every aspect of her person. This may not have been physically real, but that didn't matter to him as the only thing his mind registered was her radiant violet fur beneath the moonlight, the intensity of her golden eyes, and the sway of her body as she approached him… He had been thinking about what he would tell her ever since they parted. And now he finally had an answer.

For a moment they both were quiet. They each waited for the other to break the silence and take control, but neither would budge. In the end it was Blaze who gave in to the tension of the moment and dared to speak. "Sonic, about last night…"

"Yeah, about that…"

"Were you going to finish telling me… why you first kissed me back when we first said goodbye?" she asked him, her eyes meeting his and staying there. She didn't dare look away for fear that if she did somehow he would spirit away from her and she may never see him again.

Slowly, Sonic nodded to her. He stepped closer to Blaze as he took in a breath. "Yeah… The reason I kissed you, well…" Sonic fumbled with his words for a moment. He never was good at telling people how he felt. He tried to figure out what to say to her before he felt something touch his hand. He looked down to see Blaze had reached her hand out and taken his. Looking back up at her, into her eyes, he finally found the words he wanted. "The reason I kissed you… Ever since I've met you I've felt something from you. I knew you were strong, determined, and courageous, but I also felt something else. You were sad, you were lonely. I know we didn't exactly get off to the best start in our friendship, but the more you opened up to us the happier you became. I got to see something in you not that different from me. You like adventure; you're devoted to your ideals; most importantly you don't like being alone. And I don't want you to be alone. I wanted to take away some of that sadness. And when we had to part ways and I was afraid I wouldn't see you again, I decided… I kissed you because I wanted you to know you're not alone, that you'll always have me there for you no matter what. That's why I kissed you, Blaze."

Blaze just listened. She could feel emotions she had never felt before well up inside her at his words. "Sonic," she asked quietly, "do you love me?"

Sonic watched her quietly for a moment. He didn't need to think about it for very long. After telling both her and himself why he was drawn to her, he no longer had to wonder. "Yeah, Blaze, I do. I love you."

The field was quiet save for the rustling of the leaves in the great oak tree. Blaze's mind processed this newfound information and tried to find a way to react. Everything she had wondered, everything she had dared to hope was coming true… What else could she do?

Without warning, Blaze threw her arms around Sonic and kissed him. This time it wasn't a friendly kiss as their previous ones had been. This time it was a full blown passionate kiss. She let out all of her frustrations, all of her unease, all the emotions she had been denying herself for all these years in that kiss, that simple expression. She held on tight to him as if holding on for dear life against a raging storm while she kissed him.

Sonic was stunned, but only for a moment. For the longest time he had been fighting off Amy whenever she tried to do this to him, but it was different this time. She was his equal, and yet she was still someone he could care for. And he loved her. There was nothing stopping him. And as he finally registered just what had happened between them, he gladly reciprocated her passions. He held her close and kissed her deeply, his tongue playing hers for dominance of their loving exertion. It all felt so… right.

So awash in the moment was Sonic that he didn't feel himself get pushed back into the oak tree until Blaze broke off the kiss. "What are you doing?" he asked, opening his eyes in time to see her undo and remove her coat. His eyes widened.

Blaze's face had a red tint to it as she suddenly felt very self conscious. "I thought that was obvious," she said, her voice doing a poor job of disguising her intentions.

"I guess it is," Sonic answered. As she moved closer to him, he became keenly aware of her state of near undress. "This isn't real," he reminded her.

"Do you care?" she asked him.

After a moment, Sonic shook his head. "No, I guess not."

"It feels real enough to me," Blaze told him, smiling. "That's all that matters."

Sonic smiled back. "Yeah… You're right," he responded, taking her back into his arms and kissing her.

* * *

"What do you think Sonic's doing right now?" Amy asked as she sat at the rabbit family's dinner table. She idly toyed with her fork, looking listless and distracted.

Tails took another bite. "Probably just kicking back and relaxing, you know how he is."

"Yeah, you're probably right…"

* * *

Sonic had never felt so exhausted and yet so satisfied before in his life. He lay beneath the tree with Blaze curled up next to him and thought real or not, this was the life. Blaze purred quietly as Sonic stroked her back gently, letting his fingers run through her fur. He was so contented that he didn't want the moment to end. That was not to be, however, as he felt Blaze begin to stir next to him. Rubbing her eyes with the back of her hand, she blinked up at Sonic's grinning face, smiling. "Sleep well?" he asked her.

"Better than I have in a long time," she responded, stretching her arms over her head before wrapping them around his shoulders. "I should thank you for a wonderful evening."

"Hey, it was my pleasure," Sonic told her. "Really, it was."

Blaze chuckled. "The feeling is very mutual."

"Will I get to see you again?" Sonic asked.

Blaze smiled. "I sure hope so," she answered as she leaned up towards him and kissed him gently. "What time is it?"

Sonic looked up at the sky. "Well, it's not dawn yet, so I'd say… early."

She rolled her eyes. "Right," she said, swatting his arm playfully. Then she frowned. "We should get going…"

Sonic sighed, his grin disappearing. "I suppose we should," he said. He looked down at her. "See you tomorrow, same time, same place?" he asked hopefully.

Blaze nodded. "I wouldn't miss it for the world," she responded, giving him a tight hug.

And with that, the field faded away once more, the promise of more meetings between the two newfound lovers making the moment not a goodbye but rather merely a temporary absence.

* * *

Over the next few weeks Sonic's friends noticed a difference in the hedgehog's mannerisms. He seemed to be bursting with newfound energy and life, ready for action at a moment's notice, but he spent his evenings deep in meditation and thought. Amy thought it was unusual and worried about him incessantly, but Tails tried to reassure her that his meditation must have been helping him find energy and was therapeutic for him.

If only he knew, Sonic thought about Tails' supposition. Though, in a way he wasn't wrong. His meditation was invariably leading to his newfound zeal, but not for the reasons Tails thought. Being with Blaze, even in such a limited and imaginary capacity did wonders for Sonic. In the plane of their minds, their imaginations could run wild. They went on adventures together, shared dates to exotic places, and sometimes just chilled their heels and enjoyed each other's company. Sonic knew it may not have been physically real, but being with Blaze made him feel better than he ever had before. He shared with her his love of life and helped her build her confidence, and she shared with him her sense of duty and responsibility. Sonic loved being with someone who was in the most important ways his equal and yet someone he could still look out for.

As good as he felt, he was still concerned about his friends. None of them but Knuckles knew what was going on, and he felt a little bad that they didn't know. He just didn't think that they would accept it, least of all Amy. He thought she was a good friend, but she was a little… obsessive, especially when there was even the slightest hint that another girl was interested in him.

Well, he decided, he would tell them all in good time. Maybe when he could find a way to be with Blaze physically, which he still held out hope that sooner or later he would, he would tell them. In the meantime, he fully intended to enjoy all the time they could spend together. In fact, he was on his way to do just that.

So distracted was he as he opened the thick door to the makeshift emerald shrine that he didn't notice the small cybernetic bird that flew in with him and hid perched in the corner of the room. But Sonic wasn't paying attention. He took his place and began his meditation, as the spy bird watched him and monitored his actions and vital signs.

* * *

Blaze waited patiently for her lover in a place that was very familiar to her. Just knowing he would be there soon was comforting to her as she reflected on the time they were sharing. Being with him had opened her eyes to a new world for her; one where she didn't have to be tied down to her tight emotional reins and could be open and honest with another person more so than she had ever been in her life. She gained confidence in herself, confidence to open up to other people. She wanted to open up to people in her world like she had to Sonic and his friends, but she still felt unsure. She could let go of her emotional controls here, but it wasn't real. In the real world she still had to control her flames. With practice and maybe even some help from Sonic she could change that, but until she could control herself she would never be able to get close to another. She almost dreaded the day that Sonic could find a way to go to her world or to get her to his. What if she couldn't control herself by then? If she couldn't, she might put the relationship they had started here in jeopardy, and the fear of losing Sonic was something she wasn't ready to deal with. But that would be one of life's bridges, one she had yet to cross.

For the moment, all her doubts and worries disappeared as she felt Sonic's presence in this place. She pretended not to notice as he sneaked up behind her quietly and wrapped his arms around her waist, kissing her neck. "Hey gorgeous," he said with a smirk. "Miss me?"

"You know it," she replied, placing her hands over his.

"Nice place you've got here," Sonic remarked as he held her close to him.

Blaze smiled. "This is my home in my world," she explained. "Well, actually, it's the roof. I wanted to show you one of my favourite sights."

Sonic looked around, letting her go slowly. "This is your home? It's massive!" he commented, his eyes widening as he looked around at the vast halls of marble and gold.

"Well, I AM a princess," Blaze remarked with a grin. "Look over here, this is the best part about my home," she instructed as she took Sonic's hand and led him to the roof's edge. Sonic let out a low whistle as he stared out over the village below the temple to see the sun setting behind the hills in the distance. It was almost like a scene out of a painting or a movie.

"This is amazing!" Sonic commented.

"This is my favourite part of this place," Blaze explained. "Sunsets are just like this back home. When you can just stay up here and watch it, you feel like everything's right with the world."

Sonic smiled at her. "You know what? You're right."

Blaze smiled back. "I just wanted to share this with you."

"Thank you, Blaze," Sonic replied, leaning towards her and kissing her softly.

Blaze leaned against him, wrapping her arm around his waist and resting her head in the crook of his shoulder as the two of them watched the sun fall behind the horizon and the stars appear to pepper the night sky like sequins on a field of black velvet. No words were exchanged between them as they enjoyed the simple presence of the other. All was quiet, until Blaze spoke up. "Would you like to see the rest of the temple?" she asked him, looking up at him.

Sonic glanced down at her. "Sure thing," he replied.

"If it's okay with you I'd like to show you my room first," she replied, a small blush on her face and a grin on her lips.

Sonic's face broke out in a grin as he reached down and scooped her up in his arms. "Point the way," he answered, kissing her cheek.

Blaze smiled and gave him directions. She remembered thinking to herself that the future was a bridge she had yet to cross. She now thought that as long as Sonic was with her she would meet any bridge with confidence.

* * *

The spybot that had been observing Sonic so intently finally made a move. With a flapping of its metal wings and the firing of a small booster on its underside, the bird fluttered to land on Sonic's back. Its wings began to retract, and from its back a small needle emerged, moving its way up to Sonic's neck. With a quick movement, it plunged the needle into Sonic's neck. And finally, the light on the top of the robot's head began to blink, signifying a transmission…

* * *

Everything was going so well. Blaze didn't notice anything unusual about the situation, and neither did Sonic. They were laughing and kissing, as Sonic laid Blaze down on her bed and started to undo her coat. But then Sonic stopped.

"Sonic?" Blaze asked as she leaned up on her elbows while Sonic put a hand to his head. "Are you okay?"

"I'll be fine," Sonic tried to reassure her. "I just… need… a…" Sonic couldn't finish the thought. His eyes shut and he collapsed on the bed.

"Sonic!" Blaze called out, sitting up quickly and shifting Sonic's position. She tried to shake him awake. "Sonic? Sonic! Please answer me!"

Sonic didn't wake up, nor did he answer her. Before Blaze could begin to wonder what had happened, she soon found herself with something new to worry about. From nearby, shining orbs of light began to appear and from them materialized a squadron of Egg Pawns, all bearing weapons, all trained on Sonic and Blaze.

* * *

To help himself unwind, Tails had decided to spend some time working on the Tornado 3. The engine had been rattling a bit for the last few days, so he thought he would take a look at that and while he was at it give the entire chassis a good wash. Why not? It wasn't like there was much else going on. Sonic was off meditating again and he couldn't find Cream. Tails was scrubbing the underside of the plane's body when he heard the banging on the door to his workshop. "Who could that be?" he asked of nobody in particular as he pulled his attention away from his precious plane, wiping his hands off on a rag, and opening the door to the workshop. Standing at the door were Amy and Cream, both panting and out of breath, looking panicked. "Cream? Amy? What's wrong?" Tails asked.

"You haven't felt it!" Amy asked incredulously.

"Felt what?" Tails asked, blinking curiously.

Then he felt it.

The ground beneath them began to rumble and shake ever so slightly.

"What's THAT?" Tails asked, looking at the floor.

"I don't know," Amy replied, "but it's moving!"

Tails' eyes widened. "How is it moving?"

"It moved past my house and just kept going!" Cream piped up. "I found Amy and we started following it! It's been doing that for about an hour now!"

"What's worse," Amy added, "we haven't been able to find Sonic!"

Tails thought. "This is suspicious… So of course it reeks of Dr. Eggman. Sonic's at the emerald shrine meditating, we'd better go get him!"

No sooner was the plan decided on than Tails had the Tornado fired up and the three took off for the shrine. When they arrived, Tails opened the door and the three saw a shocking sight. Sitting in front of the emeralds was Sonic, with a small robot on his back with a probe stuck in his neck. "What's going on here!" Tails asked, hurrying to Sonic's side.

"Sonic!" Amy cried out, rushing to his side and taking his arm. Amy shook him gently trying to wake him up. "Sonic, wake up!"

"He can't hear you," came a digitized voice reverberating throughout the cavern. The three friends looked around to find the source of the voice when the device on Sonic's back started to move. Tails and Amy backed off as a small lens was revealed. The device projected a hologram before the group, and took on the form of a very familiar and disturbing figure.

"Eggman!" Tails shouted angrily.

"Very astute, Mr. Prower," the scientist retorted, crossing his arms in front of him. "I see you've all met my little friend there," he continued as he gestured to the device on Sonic's back.

"What did you do to him!" Amy demanded of him.

Eggman laughed. "Oh don't worry, Sonic is perfectly all right, at least for now. How long he'll remain that way remains to be seen. My little robot has injected him with a neurotoxin to keep him asleep, and I'm currently doing a little broadcasting into his subconscious," he explained. "He'll be physically fine, but once my transmission takes its toll on him he'll be nothing more than a vegetable!"

"You're sick!" Cream charged.

"Guilty," Eggman answered, laughing.

"And are you behind the tremors too?" Tails asked.

"But of course," he replied. "I can't break into that chamber with a frontal attack, of course, but like all security systems there's always a back door."

Tails' eyes widened as he realized what was happening. "You're tunneling into the cave!"

"Bingo," Eggman answered. "I estimate you have about 45 minutes left before my robots break through the cave wall and take those Chaos Emeralds! None of you stand a chance without your pitiful hero! Enjoy the futility of your situation, children, I know I am. Oh, and don't even think of trying to remove my robot. If you do, Sonic dies instantly." With that, Eggman's hologram dissolved away into nothingness, leaving the robot on Sonic's back to continue its devious work.

"What are we gonna do?" Amy asked. "We've gotta wake Sonic up so he can stop Eggman from stealing the Emeralds!"

"But how?" Cream asked.

Tails thought to himself. "Knuckles," he muttered. "Sonic went to see Knuckles, and he taught him to meditate! So maybe Knuckles can help us wake him up!"

"Great idea!" Amy replied. "One problem though, how are we gonna get him?"

"Can you two stay with Sonic while I go get Knuckles?" Tails asked, hurrying for the exit. Amy and Cream nodded. Tails hurried out of the cave and fired up his biplane.

"Hurry back," Amy whispered, as she returned to Sonic's side and took his hand.

* * *

Sonic stirred drowsily as he tried to remember what had happened. He remembered taking Blaze to her room, and then… nothing. "What happened?" he muttered as he sat up slowly.

"Sonic, thank god you're awake!" Blaze said, moving to his side. "I think we've lost those Egg Pawns for now, but it won't be long before they find us again!"

"Egg Pawns?" Sonic asked. "What happened? And why do I feel so weak?" he asked, suddenly realizing that he could hardly move.

Blaze held him up, holding an arm around his shoulders. "Eggman's tried to poison you," she explained. "I heard him from the outside. He's beaming his robots into our minds to try and take you out so he can take the Chaos Emeralds."

Sonic's eyes widened. "Man, that's low! I've gotta stop him!" he said as he tried to stand. He got partway up before his legs gave way beneath him and he collapsed back onto the ground with a wince.

Blaze remained at his side, helping him up. "Easy there, Sonic, you're in no condition to do much of anything."

"I hate feeling helpless like this," Sonic grumbled.

"Believe me, I know the feeling," she replied. "Until you get some strength back, just trust me. It's my turn to take care of you." Blaze quickly pulled Sonic to the side as energy shots flew over their heads. The two of them whirled around to see the three Egg Pawns bearing blasters and shields approaching them. "Believe in me, Sonic, like I believe in you," Blaze told him as she raised her hand. She allowed her inner flames to well up within her as she guided the burning energy to her fingers. With concentration, Blaze formed it into a ball of flames and threw it at the approaching Pawns, shattering them to scrap metal.

"Thanks, Blaze," Sonic said, wincing as she moved under his arm to hold him up. "Thank you for everything."

"I promise I'll protect you, Sonic," Blaze said.

* * *

"This is bad," Knuckles mused as he stood over Sonic's unconscious form, circling him and observing him. "He's really under. I don't know if I can snap him out of this."

"That's just great," Amy grumbled. "We're back at square one."

Knuckles kneeled in front of Sonic and sighed. "Well, Sonic, I hope she was worth it."

Amy blinked. "She? Who's 'she?'" she asked, narrowing her eyes.

Knuckles looked up, suddenly realizing that he had just said something he shouldn't have. "Uh oh," he mumbled.

"No, tell me, who is she!" Amy demanded.

Knuckles cringed. He was cornered. And Sonic was screwed, if he ever came out of this. "The reason Sonic wanted to learn to meditate was so he could communicate with Blaze again," he explained. "The Chaos Emeralds and Sol Emeralds are in a manner linked, so he thought the link may just carry over dimensions. Apparently it did."

"So you mean to tell us," Amy began, "that this whole time he's been seeing Blaze behind our backs!"

"I guess so," Knuckles answered.

Amy looked at Sonic's hand, which she still held in hers. "If he comes out of this alive, I'm gonna kill him," she grumbled.

"Let's just get ourselves out of this in one piece for now," Tails said. "Maybe we can find a way to intercept Eggman's transmission into Sonic's mind to help him out. If I can take a look at that robot, I might be able to modify the communications system in the Tornado to broadcast my own signal to the device."

The other three looked at each other. "It's the best idea we've got," Knuckles answered.

"I'll get on it," Tails said as he gently touched the device on Sonic's back and carefully removed the back panel. "I just hope I'm not too late."

* * *

"These things just keep coming!" Sonic called as Blaze helped him away from the Egg Pawns. The temple around them was damaged and crumbling and the more Pawns they destroyed the more appeared to take their place. They had tried whatever they could to stop the robots; change the setting, wake themselves up, everything. Whatever Eggman was doing to Sonic it had trapped them both within their minds. Fortunately for them, Sonic had regained some more of his strength. Not enough to fight off the robots on his own, but enough to make it easier for Blaze and himself to escape.

"I know," Blaze replied, "but we can't give up. We need to keep moving. We'll find a way out of this."

"Blaze," Sonic said, "I'm sorry you had to get dragged into my problem."

"Don't talk like that," Blaze scolded him. "You're my friend and I love you. We'll do this together."

Sonic smiled a bit at her. "I don't deserve you, you know?"

She smirked a bit back. "I know."

"Sonic?" came a voice from all around them. Someone was trying to speak to them from the outside.

"Tails?" Sonic asked curiously, knowing that the fox couldn't hear him from where he was.

"Sonic, if you can hear me," Tails began, "I'm going to try and hack into Eggman's transmission and give you a hand. I'm not sure if this is gonna work though."

Sonic and Blaze looked at each other. "The kid's not filling me with a lot of confidence," Blaze said.

"Trust me," Sonic responded, "Tails knows what he's doing."

"I hope so," she said. "Because if there was ever a time when we needed a miracle now would be it," she added as she saw the approaching mass of Egg Pawns. This time there were more than ever. A line formed throughout the hall, more than Blaze could fight off this time. She tried to turn and go the other way, only to find that the robots had boxed them in.

"Blaze," Sonic said, "you've gotta get out of here! Leave me, I'll only slow you down!"

Blaze did no such thing. She held on to him and raised her hand, building up some flames. "If there's one thing you've taught me about friendship it's that friends can rely on each other. I'm not going to leave you here, Sonic. I'd be a pretty bad student if I did." Unfortunately for all her bravado Blaze knew she was in trouble. The robots were converging on their position…

"Incoming!" came a shout from above. Sonic and Blaze looked skyward.

"I told you he knew what he was doing!" Sonic shouted with a grin as the two of them saw what looked like the Tornado 3 fly down towards the swarm of robots. The Pawns were momentarily distracted by this sight, and raised their weapons to fight back, but Tails was quicker on the trigger than they were. The Tornado's machine guns began to rake through the rows of Pawns like a finger through dust. The remaining Pawns all began to fire back, and although the great hall was vast, there was not a lot of room to fly in. Tails found himself working hard to evade the shots while still counterattacking, but the distraction was enough. One by one Pawns began to fall in a path leading to Sonic and Blaze. They were so distracted watching the firefight that they didn't notice the Pawn behind them until it was right on top of them. But before it could strike, it stopped. A spiked fist punched through its armor from behind, lifting the robot up and flinging it into the mass of robots behind it.

Knuckles grinned. "Need a little help?"

"Your timing is impeccable," Blaze answered. "Thanks."

"Don't mention it."

"Let me guess," Sonic began, "you told them?"

Knuckles rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah, sorry about that."

"Forget about it, I can forgive you this time," Sonic said with a chuckle.

Two more Pawns approached them from the side, but before Knuckles and Blaze could fight back a large yellow mallet crashed into one and a small blue Chao latched on to the other. In no time, both were nothing more than scrap.

"Blaze! Mr. Sonic! Are you okay?" Cream asked, hurrying up to them.

"I've been better," Sonic answered. "Thanks, Cream."

Blaze smiled. "Good to see you again, kid."

Cream smiled brightly. "I missed you Blaze!"

"You should have told us," Amy said, glaring darkly at Sonic and Blaze.

Sonic sighed. "If I did, you would have just reacted the way you're doing now."

"I was worried sick about you!" Amy shouted. "Sneaking around to see Blaze without any of us knowing, and look what happened! Eggman found out and took advantage of it!"

Sonic and Blaze were quiet for a moment. She wasn't wrong, and they both knew it.

"Amy," Knuckles asked, "can we settle this later when we're NOT in immediate danger?"

"Guys? A little help?" called Tails as the Pawns' attacks finally dealt enough damage to his imaginary biplane, bringing it down.

"Tails!" Cream called out, taking off, flapping her ears quickly as she tried to catch up to the falling biplane and get the endangered kit. Tails quickly unbuckled his seatbelt as Cream reached the falling plane, reaching her hand out for him. He grabbed on tight, and Cream took off, pulling Tails out of the plane to safety. The plane crashed near the back of the great hall, taking out a large chunk of robots nearby.

"Nice catch, Cream!" Sonic shouted.

"We've got them on the run now!" Knuckles shouted as they worked to push back the attacking forces. Blaze stayed with Sonic to help him while the others fought against the remains of the attacking horde.

"Hold it!" a booming voice shouted, causing the combatants to stop. The roof began to crumble above them, and chunks of rock began to fall as a large human shaped robot crashed through and fell to the ground to land on its feet. The robot was large and rotund, with a large spiked mace connected to its left hand, and in the cockpit on its head sat the rotund form of Dr. Eggman. "Very clever, trying to hack into my subconscious broadcast," Eggman began. "However, it won't work. My forces are almost in the chamber and I intend to personally see to it that none of you ever wakes up again!"

"Bring it on, Eggman!" Knuckles shouted.

"We'll take you on any day!" Tails added.

"Aren't we the pretentious ones!" the doctor shouted back. "Let's see you handle this!" The robot's arm lifted up and swung down, crashing the spiked mace into the floor before Knuckles and Tails. The two managed to jump away from the attack before it hit them fortunately for them, but only just so.

Amy turned to Sonic and Blaze. Her look was pained as she said to Blaze, "Take care of Sonic, please." With that, she raised her hammer and hurried towards the robot.

"Is that all you've got!" Eggman shouted, as he took a horizontal swing at Amy. She jumped the mace before it hit and raised her hammer to strike the cockpit, but Eggman was too quick. He grabbed her with the robot's other hand and flung her into the wall. Cream hurried behind the robot and ordered Cheese to attack, but its armor was too tough for the little Chao to damage.

Blaze looked at Sonic. "I have to help them," she said.

"Go," Sonic told her. "You can take that thing out, I know it."

Blaze smiled and kissed his cheek. "I'll be back, I promise." Blaze turned to face the robot and flared up. She rushed towards the robot and started throwing fireballs at it, damaging its arms and legs in the process.

"I wasn't expecting to see YOU here, Blaze," Eggman commented. "I owe you a little payback for last time we met." Eggman raised the mace arm to Blaze and with a burst of jet fire the mace flew from the robot's wrist towards Blaze. Her eyes widened and she tried to jump away, but the mace was too quick. It slammed into Blaze and crushed her into the wall.

"Blaze!" Sonic shouted, his eyes widening as he tried to force himself to his feet. He was still weak though and cursed himself for his inability to help.

Eggman laughed as the mace flew back to his robot's wrist and reattached itself. He stomped towards Blaze's fallen form and grabbed her. "I must thank you for foiling my plans earlier. Perhaps some pain and suffering before I crush you will be adequate compensation," he mused as he lifted Blaze up and began to squeeze.

Blaze cried out in pain as she felt the robot's grip tightening. "Sonic! Help me!" she cried as she felt consciousness slipping away.

"Blaze…" Sonic watched the scene before him with anger welling up in him. He couldn't—he WOULDN'T—sit by and watch this happen. Through a sheer force of will, Sonic found himself standing on his own. Miraculously, as he did this, Sonic felt all the pain and weakness flow away from him. He glared at Eggman darkly. "Eggman, you're going to regret this!" he shouted, as he ran towards the robot.

"What!" Eggman shouted, his attention drawn from Blaze momentarily. That moment was all Sonic needed as he leaped into the air, curled into a spiky ball, and flung himself into the robot's arm. Sonic's rotation and sharp spines sawed the arm right off the robot, causing it to drop Blaze. "How dare you!" Eggman shouted.

"No, how dare YOU!" Sonic shouted back. "You're gonna pay fat boy!" Sonic jumped again, and this time his spin attack found itself connecting with the cockpit of the robot. Eggman couldn't deflect the attack in time, and as Sonic struck vital components he could see the chain reaction of destruction throughout the robot.

"No, my plan was so perfect!" Eggman shouted as Sonic leaped back and landed next to Blaze, picking her up and dashing away. When the robot exploded, it all ended. The pawns all disappeared, Eggman was gone, and all was quiet.

But there was no time to relax. "Sonic, Eggman's drill is almost in the chamber!" Tails shouted.

Sonic looked at Blaze. "I'll see you soon," he said, leaning forward and giving her a soft kiss.

"I know," Blaze replied.

* * *

Sonic's eyes flew open in the real world, and for the first time he felt the device on his back. He reached behind him quickly and grabbed for the spybot, pulling it away from him and wincing as the probe in his neck left. He noticed that the robot was no longer functioning, as its blinking lights and eye had stopped glowing. The cave rumbled with the force of Eggman's approaching attack force. Sonic threw the spybot to the side and stood up, willing the Emeralds to him. They circled around him as he saw the tip of a drill begin to break through the floor beneath him. "Not this time," Sonic said as he thought back to the incident aboard the Ark so long ago. He saved his own life from the vacuum of space with a power he didn't know he had; the power that until then only Shadow had seemed to have. Sonic used it both to fight Shadow and to stop the fall of the Ark then, and now it seemed to be the only chance he had. As the drill emerged further into the chamber, Sonic reached his hands down to hover over the drill and concentrated. "Chaos Control!" he shouted, bringing his hands down to grab the drill. As soon as he touched it, a bright flash of light filled the cave, and in an instant, the drill was gone and all was quiet.

Over a distant ocean, the still of the night was broken by a bright flash of light. A giant drill materialized in the middle of the night sky and fell into the water with a tremendous splash. As it sank, a hatch opened up and a small circular pod flew out. "You haven't won yet!" Eggman shouted from his Eggmobile, knowing that nobody could hear him but not caring in the slightest, "I WILL get those Chaos Emeralds!"

Sonic breathed a breath of relief as the Emeralds floated back to their pedestals. His shoulders slumped as his mind finally registered that the battle had ended. Tails, Knuckles, Amy and Cream approached him from behind. "That was great, Sonic!" Tails said.

"You're a good fighter even in your dreams!" Knuckles remarked.

"Congratulations, Mr. Sonic!" Cream said happily.

Sonic turned around and faced Amy. He knew what he had to say to her. "Amy, I'm sorry I didn't tell you earlier," he told her.

Amy crossed her arms over her chest. "Why didn't you?" she asked.

"Because I didn't want to lose you as a friend," Sonic answered. "I know how you can get when you think I'm paying attention to someone else, and I didn't want you to hate me or Blaze because of this."

"I might have understood," she told him.

Sonic sighed. "Maybe, but I didn't know. I'm sorry I didn't tell any of you what I was doing."

"Well maybe what we should do first is move the Chaos Emeralds from here," Tails said. "Now that Eggman knows where we were keeping them he's bound to come back."

"Yeah," Sonic agreed. "But there's something I've gotta do first."

* * *

The next evening, it was Sonic's turn to wait for the arrival of Blaze in their shared imaginary realm. He knew this was going to be one of the most painful discussions he would ever have with the cat, but it had to be said. As Blaze appeared, she hurried to Sonic and threw her arms around him. "Oh thank god, I was so worried about you! Did you stop Eggman? Are the Emeralds safe?"

Sonic smiled weakly. "Yeah, they are." The smile drained from his face. "Blaze, we need to talk."

"I think I know what you're going to say," Blaze said.

"I don't know if we should keep doing this," Sonic told her.

Blaze was quiet. "Somehow I had a feeling you were going to say that."

"If we keep meeting like this Eggman might try something to take the Emeralds again," Sonic reasoned. "And if Eggman Nega finds out about it too, he'll make trouble for you in your world while you're here too."

Blaze's head drooped. "I know…"

Sonic lifted a hand to Blaze's chin. "I'm sorry, Blaze…"

Blaze looked up at him. "Just say you love me."

Sonic smiled slightly. "I love you, Blaze."

"Then that's all I need," she said to him.

"One day I'm going to find a way to be with you for real," Sonic told her. "When I do we won't have to worry any more. I promise I'll never stop loving you, no matter how long it takes."

"And I won't stop loving you," Blaze responded. She leaned in to him and kissed him deeply. When it ended, she smiled. "I'll see you again, I promise!"

Sonic smiled back. "Yeah, again!"

And with that, all went white one last time.

* * *

Blaze awoke alone in her temple, and for the first time realized just how alone she was. Sonic was gone. They were all gone. But she didn't feel the sense of loss that she thought she should feel. Sonic was still with her, if not in body then in spirit. He loved her and she him, and they would not let something like a dimensional barrier stand in their way. One day she would see him again, and that thought comforted her more than enough. Until the day they could be together again, though, she would make an effort to carry his spirit with her and follow through with the things he taught her, that she could find friends and open up to others and rely on others.

The doors to the temple flew open with a loud bang, and Blaze whirled around to see a young wolf girl standing in the doorway. "What is it?" Blaze asked.

"Princess, Eggman Nega is attacking the village!" the girl explained. "Please, you have to help us!"

Blaze looked up. Her love, her duty, and her flames would give her the strength to defeat any evil that stood before her. She thought of Sonic, and knew that as long as she kept him with her in spirit that she had the strength to do anything. Flaring up, Blaze grinned. "All right, Eggman Nega, let's do this."

* * *

Sonic awoke in the new shrine that Tails had constructed under his workshop. This new safe house was built with stronger walls than the previous version, using thick steel and sensors to detect coming intruders. An elevator to the main level was the only way in or out of this shrine. Sonic hated what he had to do earlier. He and Blaze had touched each other in ways neither of them fully knew, and knowing he wouldn't be able to see her anymore pained him more than anything. Then he remembered their last words to each other, so similar to those they shared before their first parting. They promised that one day they would see each other again. But Sonic didn't know how or even when that would be. It seemed so far away that he started to think he would never see Blaze again. But there was a voice inside him that told him not to lose hope. The voice that reminded him how much he loved her and how much she loved him, and that no matter where they were they would always have that. But Sonic still sighed. Patience was never his strongest point.

Sonic heard the elevator begin to descend, and he turned his head, standing up to see Tails riding the wire mesh work elevator down to the bottom of the shrine. "Sonic!" Tails shouted, a bright smile on his face. That was the kind of face Sonic only ever saw on the fox when he had some new invention he had developed, or some new gadget he obtained. "You've gotta see this!"

"Calm down buddy," Sonic said. "Where's the fire?"

Tails waved around the rolled up paper he carried with him, and as the elevator touched down he jumped over the small gate and hurried to the nearby table. "Look at this!" he instructed as he unrolled the paper to reveal a complex set of blueprints.

Sonic looked at it, confused. "Um, it's pretty neat Tails, but… what is it?"

Tails smiled. "I call it the Timespace Matter Projector!"

"And, um, what's it do?"

Tails grinned. "When it's done, it'll be able to transport us to any zone, any dimension we want!"

Sonic's eyes widened. "ANY dimension?"

Tails nodded. "ANY dimension."

A grin slowly spread over Sonic's face. Perhaps "Again" would be sooner than he once thought…


End file.
